Beastie Boys

The Beastie Boys are a Jewish-American hip hop group from the NewÂ YorkÂ City boroughs of Brooklyn and Manhattan. The main members are Mike D (real name Michael Diamond), MCA (Adam Yauch), and King Ad-Rock (Adam Horovitz).

Beastie Boys were the first white rap group of any importance and one of the few acts from the early days of hip hop that still enjoy major success today. Their rock- and punk-influenced rap has had a significant impact on artists both in and outside the hip hop scene.

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Beastie Boys were formed in 1979 as a punk band called The Young Aborigines. In 1981, Adam Yauch (MCA) joined the group and changed the name to Beastie Boys. The name "Beastie" originally stood for "Boys Entering Anarchistic States Towards Internal Excellence," and the initials B.B. intended to mimic Washington DC punk band Bad Brains. The band's original line-up consisted of Adam Yauch on bass, Kate Schellenbach on drums, John Berry on guitar, and Michael Diamond (Mike D) on vocals. Their first gig was at Berry's house on Yauch's 17th birthday. The band quickly earned support slots for Bad Brains and Reagan Youth at venues suc...